Obama cites Iraq War authorization

NEW YORK — Less than two months after President Barack Obama’s administration called for repeal of the Congressional authorization for the 2002 Iraq war, he is formally citing the 12-year-old measure as a basis for newly expanded airstrikes against the Islamic State of Syria and the Levant.

Since June, Obama has been sending official war-powers notifications to Congress about the campaign he authorized against ISIL. Administration aides have repeatedly cited the 2001 war authorization against Al Qaeda and the Taliban as grounds for strikes in Iraq.

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Some administration officials had indicated in background comments that Obama might invoke the Iraq war authorization if the bombing campaign spread to Syria, but he officially did so in a letter to Congress Tuesday. The authorization cited the measure only with a reference to its Public Law number, 107-243.

The administration’s embrace of the 2002 Iraq war authorization through this obscure citation is awkward because it paints the expanding anti-ISIL campaign as a successor to President George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq 12 years ago. Last year at the United Nations General Assembly, Obama spoke of working “to end a decade of war” and cited the withdrawal of all American troops from Iraq as a part of that effort. On Wednesday he’ll address the General Assembly the day after having essentially extended that effort.

In addition, Obama’s reliance on the measure is jarring because National Security Adviser Susan Rice wrote to House Speaker John Boehner in July to urge Congress to rescind the law. She called the Iraq War resolution “outdated” and said the White House had no plans to rely on it.

“The Iraq AUMF is no longer used for any U.S. Government activities and the Administration fully supports its repeal,” she wrote.

“Such a repeal would go much further in giving the American people confidence that ground forces will not be sent into combat in Iraq.”

Asked about the president’s invocation of the 2002 congressional measure, a senior U.S. official who asked not to be named said Tuesday that the White House was in fact relying on the 2001 war authorization, which is also cited in the letter. However, the official added: “The president would have the statutory authority to conduct airstrikes against ISIL in Syria under the 2002 Iraq [war authorization] at least to the extent that such operations are necessary to address the threat posed by ISIL’s operations in Iraq.”

The official added that there was no change in the White House’s position on the 2002 Iraq measure.